Electric gas-filled discharge device



b 927 e. HOLST ET AL ELECTRIC GAS FILLED DISCHARGE DEVICE Filed Feb. 8, 1922 mm QM y Patented I Feb. 15, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GILLES HOLST, EKKO OOSTERI -IUIS, AND JOHANNES BRUIJNES, OF EINDHOVEN,

NETHERLANDS, ASSIGNORS TO NAAMLOOZE VENNOOTSCHAP PHILIPS GLOEI- LAMPENFABRIEKEN,. OF EINDHOVEN, NETHERLANDS.

ELECTRIC GA$-EILLED DISCHARGE DEVICE.

Application filed February 8, 1922, Serial No. 534,982, and. in the Netherlands February 9, 1921..

The invention relates to gas filled discharge devices and particularly to those discharge tubes in which a luminous glow discharge is made use of for illumination purposes.

For regulating and limiting the current in such glow discharge devices a resistance is ..According to this invention two or more paths of glow discharge are connected in series in the same device. It will be apparent that with such lamps the dimensions of the series-resistance are materially reduced or even such resistances may be wholly omitted.

, In the accompanying drawing an embodi- -ment of the invention is diagrammatically represented. y

The drawing represents a glow discharge device in view in which two paths of discharge are connected together in series.

The glass bulb is represented by 1 and may be filled wit-h a suitable filling of rare gas, e. g. neon or a. mixture of rare gases The electrodes 5, 6, 8 and 9 are made of the ordinary electrode material such as iron and wound in the form of spirals. The electrodes 6 and 8 are connected to current leads 10 and 11, whereas the electrodes 5 and 9 are connected together by means of the metallic wire 7. The current leads or terminals 10 and 11 are sealed intoa glass stem 2 ;terminal 10' is led through a hollow glass tube in order to prevent discharges between'this terminail and. the electrode 6. For preventing a discharge between the electrodes 6 and 8 a plate 4 of glass, mica or like material is sealed or fastened to the tube and the etallic wire 7 is sealed through this plate 4..

The terminals 10 and 11 are connected to a suitable source of alternting or direct current and with or without the insertion of a series-resistance.

Though according to the drawing only two paths of discharge are connected in series, we have been able to so far reduce the ignition tension of each pair of electrodes that even three pairs of electrodes may be connected in series on an alternating current circuit of 220 volts. A glow discharge is thus formed on three cathodes at once, and the efficiency of the lamp is'thrice as great as the efliciency of an ordinary glo discharge lamp.

What we claim is:

1. An electric device with independent glow discharge comprising a gas-filled container, at least two pairs of electrodes within said container, the electrodes of each pair extended parallel and of contrary polarity to constitute each a discharge gap, said discharge gaps being connected in series, and means for preventing initiation of a glow discharge between electrodes belonging to difierent gaps.

2. An electric device with independent glow discharge comprising a gas-filled container, at least two pairs of electrodes within said container, the electrodes of each pair extended parallel and of contrary polarity to constituteeach a discharge gap, said discharge gaps being connected in series, and a discharge insulating separator within the tube between adjacent electrodes of the re spective pairs, whereby to prevent a discharge short-circuiting said gaps.

3. An electric device with independent glow discharge comprising a gas-filled container, at least two pairs of electrodes within said container, each of which pairs constitutes a discharge gap, said discharge gaps. being connected in series, and a screen disposed between each palr of adjacent discharge gaps which substantially divides the inner room of the container into sections.

4. An electric device with independent glow discharge comprising a sealed container, opposite leading-in wires entering the same end of said container, and one of them 1 m mimosa extended through toward the other end tion of a giow discharge between electrodes thereof, the container having an insulating belonging to difierent gaps.

tube enclosing the latter Wire, at least two In testimony whereof we aflix our signa- 1 pairs of electrodes within said container, tures each of which pairs serves as a discharge GILLES HOLST.

gap, said discharge gaps being connected in EKKO OOSTERHUIS.

series, and means for preventing the initia- JOHANNES BRUIJNES. 

